


Fanart, Fanmix, Art Walkthrough: Shadowlord and Pirate King.

by Footloose, mushroomtale



Series: Shadowlord and Pirate King [3]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Community: paperlegends, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-07
Updated: 2013-09-07
Packaged: 2017-12-25 21:54:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/958021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Footloose/pseuds/Footloose, https://archiveofourown.org/users/mushroomtale/pseuds/mushroomtale
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For Footloose's 2013 Paper Legends fic,  <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/957967">Shadowlord and Pirate King</a></p>
<p>Disclaimer: We did this for fun and fandom and make no profit from this work.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Shadowlord and Pirate King Art

**Author's Note:**

> So everyone knows, I wasn't alone in making all the graphics embedded in the story! In fact, loaded_march made all the chapter headers, the constellation labels, the horizontal break, and two seriously cool logos for the Epilogue and the Dramatis Personae. Respect, bb! <3
> 
> View on [LJ](http://mushroomtale.livejournal.com/71569.html).
> 
> View on Tumblr [1](http://mushroomtale-fanart.tumblr.com/post/60555013124/for-insanewordcounts-2013-paper-legends-fic), [2](http://mushroomtale-fanart.tumblr.com/post/60555025553/for-insanewordcounts-2013-paper), [3](http://mushroomtale-fanart.tumblr.com/post/60555039667/for-insanewordcounts-2013-paper).

COVER ART  
  
 _Light and Shadow_

 

  
  
_In the Brig_

 

  
  
_The Prophecy_

 

  
  
_The Lady Morgana_

 

  
  
_Our Bond_

 

  
  
_The Excalibur_  
From top to bottom, left to right:  
 _Merlin;_  
 _Leon; Percival; Elyan; Lucan; Geraint; Galahad;_  
 _Gwaine; Lancelot; Arthur_

 

  
  
_Shadowlord and Pirate King_

 

CONSTELLATIONS  
  
From left to right:  
 _The Hunter's Heart; The Spear of the Sidhe; The Serpent Shield; The Sword in the Stone;_  
 _The Labyrinth; Freya's Bastet; The Isle of Avalon;_  
 _The Crystal Caves; The Questing Beast; The Fomorroh;_  
 _The Wyverns; The Eyes of the Phoenix; The Cup of Life;_  
 _The Balorian Spiders; The Unicorn; The Gargoyle of Sigan;_  
 _The Valley of the Kings; The Dragon's Egg; The Great Dragon; The Crown and Sceptre_

 

  
  
  
_by_ _Footloose_

 

HORIZONTAL BREAK  
  
 _by_ _Footloose_

 

  
  
_by_ _Footloose_

 

  


Thanks for looking!


	2. Shadowlord and Pirate King Fanmix

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello! This is a small selection of songs and musical score that I've put together from the playlist I listened to while working on the art for [Shadowlord and Pirate King](http://archiveofourown.org/works/957967). Hope you enjoy!
> 
> View on [LJ](http://mushroomtale.livejournal.com/72179.html).

 

 

 

  
[ ](https://app.box.com/s/fqh4d1tv0gvdbn5zirb7)

 

 

**Fortune Favours the Bold: A Shadowlord and Pirate King Fanmix**

  


by  
_Mushroomtale_

 

[Listen](http://8tracks.com/mushroomtale/fortune-favours-the-bold)

[DOWNLOAD LINK](https://app.box.com/s/fqh4d1tv0gvdbn5zirb7)

[Mirror Link](http://www.mediafire.com/download/is5522kwgfui4fj/Fortune_Favours_the_Bold.zip)

 

01\. [MERLIN] WHITE RABBIT (SPC ECO MIX) - Collide  
02\. [ARTHUR] PACIFIC RIM - Ramin Djawadi ft. Tom Morello  
03\. [MERLIN] CORRIDOR - Tomandandy  
04\. [ARTHUR] TRINKETS TO KILL A PRINCE - Ramin Djawadi  
05\. [MERLIN] LOS ANGELES - Tomandandy  
06\. [ARTHUR] HEXES - Bassnectar ft. Chino Moreno  
07\. [MERLIN] HERE IN MY ROOM - Incubus  
08\. [ARTHUR] KINGS AND QUEENS - 30 Seconds to Mars  
09\. [MERLIN] BLACK AND GOLD - Ellie Goulding  
10\. [ARTHUR] SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE - Muse

 

01\. [MERLIN] WHITE RABBIT (SPC ECO MIX) - Collide  
A title song for Merlin. For me, the song conjures images of dark corridors and metal doors, stealth ninjas and steady heartbeats, covert missions and a sort of leisurely close combat -- as if it were Merlin against those who aren't as good as he is, and he's having a bit of fun with it. A lot of the songs in this fanmix are from different versions of **Resident Evil**. This one is from **Resident Evil 3: Extinction**.

 

02\. [ARTHUR] PACIFIC RIM - Ramin Djawadi ft. Tom Morello  
A title song for Arthur and Excalibur. It's the main theme from the movie **Pacific Rim** and it makes me think of giant metal machines, A-Teams doing the slow motion walk, all geared up with armour, blades and ammunition and strutting with a kind of we-are-rockstars cockiness. At certain times in the song, the music is reminiscent of serious, very legit space battles as well.

 

03\. [MERLIN] CORRIDOR - Tomandandy  
A theme song for when Merlin is doing combat. This time, it's faster and tighter, and Merlin is not bored because the enemy is not totally useless for once, and he is in the zone. This score is perfect for the scene in Chapter Two when Arthur watches as Merlin singlehandedly fights off three Needlers, right up until they make their escape onto _Excalibur_. This is actually the background music for when Alice was battling the Tokyo zombies in the corridor of the facility, if you've watched **Resident Evil 5: Retribution**.

 

04\. [ARTHUR] TRINKETS TO KILL A PRINCE - Ramin Djawadi  
A more serious theme song for Arthur. At the beginning, there is a low steady hum underlined with soft jangling sounds that remind me of coins, like Pirate booty. It's exotic, then suspicious, and later it becomes menacing, as if something grim is about to take place. It makes me think of betrayal and the darker side of politics. This is original score from the movie **Iron Man**.

 

05\. [MERLIN] LOS ANGELES - Tomandandy  
While listening to this song, I imagine Merlin having a dirty showdown with a White Legion Needler. It's a different atmosphere altogether because now there are actual risks, but Merlin also knows exactly what he's doing, and he hammers at the enemy, pressing every little advantage slowly but steadily until it blows over. This is original score from **Resident Evil 5: Retribution**.

 

06\. [ARTHUR] HEXES - Bassnectar ft. Chino Moreno  
This song is from the **Resident Evil 4: Afterlife** soundtrack, and it's pretty intense. Apparently the genre is called 'metalstep'.

_You surprise me with a kiss_  
_Underneath the crashing waves_  
_You revived me with your tears_  
_Then released your hexes_

_Right back where you begin_

_Torn apart from the inside_  
_Raced back into your skin_  
_By the claws you braced_

_You invite me into your veins_  
_In between the passing waves_  
_Hypnotized me with your kiss_  
_Then released your hexes_

_Right back where you begin_

_Torn apart from the inside_  
_Raced back into your skin_  
_By the claws you braced_

_By the claws_  
_By the claws_  
_By the claws_  
_By the claws_  
_By the claws_

 

07\. [MERLIN] HERE IN MY ROOM - Incubus  
This is a different kind of love ballad, profound, in a way that literally fills my mind with flashes of stars in endless skies, of galaxies and spinning slowly in outer space caught up in a lover's embrace, austere and sexual and spellbinding all at once.

_This party is old and uninviting._  
_Participants all in black and white._  
_You enter in full-blown technicolour._  
_Nothing is the same after tonight._

_If the world would fall apart_  
_In a fiction-worthy wind,_  
_I wouldn't change a thing now that you're here._  
_Your love is a verb_  
_Here in my room._  
_Here in my room._  
_Here in my room._  
_Your love is a verb_  
_Here in my room._  
_Here in my room._  
_Here in my room._

_You enter and close the door behind you._  
_Now show me the world as seen from the stars._  
_If only the lights would dim a little,_  
_I'm wary of eyes upon my scars._

_If the world would fall apart_  
_In a fiction-worthy wind,_  
_I wouldn't change a thing now that you're here._  
_Your love is a verb_  
_Here in my room._  
_Here in my room._  
_Here in my room._  
_Your love is a verb_  
_Here in my room._  
_Here in my room._  
_Here in my room._

_Pink tractor beam into your incision_  
_Head spinning as free as Dervish's whirl_  
_I came here expecting next to nothing_  
_So thank you for being "that" kind of girl._

 

08\. [ARTHUR] KINGS AND QUEENS - 30 Seconds to Mars  
An anthem for imperfect superheroes, for blood, sweat and sacrifices made as you fight for what you believe in.

_Into the night_  
_Desperate and broken_  
_The sound of a fight_  
_Father has spoken._  
_We were the kings and queens of promise_  
_We were the phantoms of ourselves_  
_Maybe the children of a lesser God_  
_Between Heaven and Hell,_  
_Heaven and Hell._

_Into your eyes_  
_Hopeless and taken_  
_We stole our new lives_  
_Through blood and name_  
_In defence of our dreams_  
_In defence of our dreams_  
_We were the kings and queens of promise_  
_We were the phantoms of ourselves_  
_Maybe the children of a lesser God_  
_Between Heaven and Hell,_  
_Heaven and Hell._

_The age of man is over_  
_A darkness comes at dawn_  
_These lessons that we've learned here_  
_Have only just begun_  
_We were the kings and queens of promise_  
_We were the phantoms of ourselves_  
_Maybe the children of a lesser God_  
_Between Heaven and Hell._

_We are the kings_  
_We are the queens_  
_We are the kings_  
_We are the queens_

 

09\. [MERLIN] BLACK AND GOLD - Ellie Goulding  
I chose Ellie Goulding's cover of this song over Sam Sparro's original because it has a clap-clap-clapclap beat that to me is more hypnotic and makes me think of even more stars. And, the song is called 'Black' and 'Gold'... what more can I say?

_Mmm_

_If the fish swam out of the ocean_  
_And grew legs and they started walking_  
_And the apes climbed down from the trees_  
_And grew tall and they started talking_  
_And the stars fell out of the sky_  
_And my tears rolled into the ocean_  
_And now I'm looking for a reason why_  
_You even set my world into motion_  
_'Cause if you're not really here_  
_Then the stars don't even matter_  
_Now I'm filled to the top with fear_  
_That it's all just a bunch of matter_  
_'Cause if you're not really there_  
_Then I don't wanna be either_  
_I wanna be next to you_  
_Black and gold, black and gold, black and gold_

_Mmm_

_I look up into the night sky_  
_I see a thousand eyes staring back_  
_And all around these golden beacons_  
_I see nothing but black_  
_I feel the weight of something beyond them_  
_I don't see what I can feel_  
_If vision is the only validation_  
_Then most of my life isn't real_  
_'Cause if you're not really here_  
_Then the stars don't even matter_  
_Now I'm filled to the top with fear_  
_That it's all just a bunch of matter_  
_'Cause if you're not really there_  
_Then I don't wanna be either_  
_I wanna be next to you_  
_Black and gold, black and gold, black and gold_  
_(Black and gold, black and gold, black and gold, black and gold, black and gold)_

_Mmm_  
_Black and gold, black and gold, black and gold_  
_Oh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh_

 

10\. [ARTHUR] SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE - Muse  
I think it would be nice to close the mix with this Muse song because I can totally imagine Arthur with a stupid lopsided grin on his face and a hand around Merlin, with the entire team on _Excalibur_ and flying off into the metaphorical sunset.

_Ooh, baby don't you know I suffer?_  
_Oh, baby can you hear me moan?_  
_You caught me under false pretences_  
_How long before you let me go?_  
_Ooh, you set my soul alight_  
_Ooh, you set my soul alight_  
_Glaciers melting in the dead of night_  
_And the superstars sucked into the supermassive_  
_(Ooh, you set my soul alight)_  
_Glaciers melting in the dead of night_  
_And the superstars sucked into the supermassive_  
_(Ooh, you set my soul)_  
_I thought I was a fool for no one_  
_But ooh, baby I'm a fool for you_  
_You're the queen of the superficial_  
_And how long before you tell the truth?_  
_Ooh, you set my soul alight_  
_Ooh, you set my soul alight_  
_Glaciers melting in the dead of night_  
_And the superstars sucked into the supermassive_  
_(Ooh, you set my soul alight)_  
_Glaciers melting in the dead of night_  
_And the superstars sucked into the supermassive_  
_(Ooh, you set my soul)_  
_Supermassive black hole_  
_Supermassive black hole_  
_Supermassive black hole_  
_Supermassive black hole_

 

 

[ ](https://app.box.com/s/fqh4d1tv0gvdbn5zirb7)


	3. Creating the Cover Art for Shadowlord and Pirate King

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A walkthrough for the making of the cover art of [Shadowlord and Pirate King](http://archiveofourown.org/works/957967).
> 
> View on [LJ](http://mushroomtale.livejournal.com/72485.html).

 

  


 

Hello! This is mushroomtale, and I'm here to walk you though a step-by-step on one of the usual ways I go about making fanart -- or more specifically, the cover art for Shadowlord and Pirate King.

 

 **Step 1 - Choosing an Art Style.**  
When I want to make fanart, the first thing I consider is which art style or method to use. This may depend on certain factors: the amount of time needed (some methods take longer) versus the length of time available (if it's for a fest), the theme or concept (if it's inspired by a fic or a prompt), and even an certain look I'm dying to try out. It doesn't always end up looking the way it's supposed to, but you learn new things so it's okay.

For this year's PaperLegends, I chose to do pencil lineart and digital coloring. I always finish all the pencils before going digital, so in case there's a delay and I end up not having time to color, at least I'll have the lineart to cover all bases.

 

 **Step 2 - Research.**  
At this point, I want to fill my mind with visual information. What I do is read the fic, absorb as much of the feel of it as I can while taking notes of the scenes that catch my attention. Then I read those scenes again while visualizing them and filling in the smaller details. When some details are unspecified, I ask my writer about them.

For this particular project, I also asked for a list of my writer's inspirations -- movies and TV series -- that I could watch so we're on the same page regarding the world view of the story. Basically, I'm building a mirror image of the writer's universe in my mind so I can then translate the story into pictures.

 

 **Step 3 - Pencils.**  
Since I hadn't drawn Merlin fanart in more than year, I needed some warm-up. At first I thought the cover art could be a simple piece with headshots of Merlin and Arthur, but once I'd started planning the rest of the in-book art, I felt underwhelmed by the half-finished cover art. I decided to make a new cover then, something hopefully more dramatic and eye-catching...

 

 **Step 4 - Composition and Design.**  
Arthur is pirate royalty. He wears Pendragon red fabrics and golden armour that commands the same amount of attention as his person. Merlin, on the other hand, is an assassin. He wears black from head to toe, and his shadows enable him to blend into his surroundings. 

Merlin actually wears a simpler body armor for most of the story, but just for the cover art, I wanted the readers' eyes to linger, so I tried to come up with a special (maybe ceremonial) armour that is still practical but also unique. I also integrated some fabrics into the armor to create the illusion of shadows.

I showed my designs to Footloose and after discussing some changes, and this is what we came up with:

 

 

 

 **Step 5 - Going Digital.**  
After the pencil work comes scanning and cleaning up the lineart. At this point I'm feeling the pressure because time is running out to color all the pieces the way I want to. Of course, the cover art still has the highest priority. 

I wasn't sure what color palette would work best for the cover, but I knew in terms of brightness and contrast that I wanted Arthur's half of the picture to be bright and with color, and Merlin's to be darker and almost monochromatic. Merlin is facing away from the light source so he is bathed in shadow, while Arthur is sitting on his wooden throne in the background, where the light can reach his face and armour.

Because I wanted to try authentic-looking comic coloring but found that it wasn't as simple as it looked, I racked up an embarrassing number of failed attempts:

 

 

But I guess everything worked out all right in the end, when I finally managed to beat the colors into submission with Photoshop and everyone's encouragement.

 

 

After finishing this piece, I went on to color the original version of the cover art, which was used as the in-chapter art for chapter 20 as well as the fanmix cover. I rendered the rest of the pieces with flat colors and textures. It was a rush job, but you make the best of what you have to work with at the time. ; )

Thanks for reading!


End file.
